Come Back to Me
by ReadySetSail
Summary: The Dark Swan returns to Storybrooke, but her new mantle makes her a danger to everyone she loves. Killian Jones must free her from the darkness before he loses her to it forever.
1. Chapter 1

Killian's eyes fluttered open at the sound of creaking floorboards outside his room at Granny's. When the footsteps paused at the other side of his door, and the keyhole glowed with magic as it gently clicked open, he jolted awake and swept the hook from his nightstand, locking it in place at the end of his arm with the speed of three hundred years' experience.

His eyes strained against the almost complete darkness. He remained in bed, not to tip off the intruder to his knowledge of their presence, gaze trained on the door as the knob slowly and silently turned. His eyes followed the lithe silhouette that crept through the sliver of moonlight coming through the curtains, and the figure disappeared into the darkness beside the wall at his back.

Closing his eyes, the pirate listened, waiting for the intruder to creep closer. When his foe paused at his back, close enough to hear their controlled breathing, he pounced. Twisting and launching himself at the shadowy figure, he pinned her against the wall, his hook against her throat.

Her?

Faces inches apart, the slice of moonlight glinting off of the blue-tinged silver quality of her skin, he stared into the eyes he had seen every night in his dreams for the three weeks since she disappeared in a swirl of darkness in the middle of the street. In the instant he looked at her, before he even drew his next breath, Killian saw fear, desperation, and maybe a faint glimmer of hope reflected back at him.

And in a flash it was gone; replaced with a hardened barrier of complete darkness.

"Swan?" he breathed as the air rushed out of his lungs. With a small flick of her hand, a wave of magic swept over his body, paralyzing him where he stood and causing his hook to vanish from his arm, only to reappear dangling from the coat rack across the room.

Killian gazed into her eyes, looking for that glimpse of emotion he saw before her guard was up, and her face rushed toward his. Her forehead collided with him in a headbutt that knocked his stiff form off his feet, and he fell straight backwards - unconscious before he even hit the ground.

* * *

As the world came back into focus, Killian let out a low groan and rolled his head around in an attempt to quell the throbbing. He quickly realized that his head was the only part of his body that he _could_ move. He was seated on the floor of his room, leaning against the bed, his limbs still frozen by Emma's spell.

Emma. She sat facing him in the armchair on the other side of the room. Her legs were crossed casually, but her back was ramrod straight and angled toward him, and her hands clutched at the arms of the chair as if fighting the impulse to go for his throat. The way her elbows jutted out to each side reminded him of a predatory bird.

And she was hauntingly beautiful.

In any other situation, the way in which the black leather clung to her figure would have inspired some lewd innuendos, but Captain Hook was overwhelmed with empathy for the creature before him, struggling with all her might to fight off the darkness.

"Swan, love…" he began, but she abruptly silenced him.

"Shut up," she spat, holding up her hand and shutting her eyes. "Just give me a second."

He waited for a few seconds, but his nature quickly got the better of him, and he muttered through a crooked smirk, "Emma, if you wanted to restrain me, all you had to do was ask."

"Killian." She cut him off with a curt tone. "I would really love not to kill you. Could you maybe do me a solid and stop drawing attention to the fact that you're immobilized… unarmed… isolated…"

As she listed off his disadvantages, she leaned out further from the chair, slowly creeping toward him like a leopard stalking its prey. Losing her fragile hold on control, she leapt forward, coming to a stop right beside his face in a feline crouch. Her eyes gleamed with the desire to kill, and he stared back at her, unblinking. He never even flinched.

She closed her eyes and released a shaky breath.

"Kilian," she murmured, her voice strained. "In a few seconds, I'm going to release you. I need you to slowly and quietly slip out the door. Once you're in the hallway, run. Get to Regina's house as fast as you can and tell her I'm here and that she needs to figure out a way to contain me."

She moved in closer, touching her forehead to his. He shut his eyes and gently leaned into her touch.

"Don't tell anyone else," she added. And much too soon, she shoved away from him, and released him from the hold of her dark magic.

He looked up at her, still just inches away from him. Her head was bowed, her eyes shut tight, and tension rolled off of her in near-tangible waves. Resisting the urge to reach out and pull her against his chest with the promise that he would make everything okay, he slipped away from her. He retreated to the door, silently retrieved his hook from the coat rack, and, with a quick glance over his shoulder, stepped into the darkened hallway.


	2. Chapter 2

"And you just left her in your room?" Regina asked with that tone of voice that implied everyone else in the world was incompetent.

Killian had shown up on her doorstep at close to 2:00 in the morning, but the hot kettle on the stove told him that she had not been sleeping. Robin slumped against the kitchen counter in a manner that signaled that he had.

"What else was I to do? I wasn't exactly in a position to make demands," he retorted.

"What, Captain? Don't know how to handle one girl?" she teased, but the jab held a little less venom than she typically utilized. Her heart wasn't in it.

He leveled his gaze at her, jaw clenching.

"So she's really back," she muttered, statement more than question.

"Aye."

Robin moved closer, placing his hand at her back, "And the dagger? It is secured in your vault, Regina?"

"Of course," she replied as she led the group out of the kitchen toward the front door, "but that's our first stop. She could get to it with enough time and effort. The only way to make sure she doesn't is if one of us possesses it."

"I will claim the dagger," Killian declared.

Regina looked him in the eye and nodded once. He could see the guilt she felt for Emma's sacrifice underneath her facade of annoyance. She did not like being in Emma's debt, and it was weighing on her.

"Well then, we should get going. There's no telling what that fool will do to this town if we don't get her under control," she said, opening the door.

Killian blocked her with an arm stretched across the door frame. "She's still Emma," he asserted.

She stood at the doorway facing straight ahead, not acknowledging the pirate's words, but not breaking the arm he had foolishly put in her path, either.

"She may be gripped by the darkness," he continued, "but she's still in there. I saw it in her eyes. It's just buried deep."

She remained still for a few moments, staring straight ahead.

"Well then we better dig her out."

And with that, she brushed past him.

Robin clapped Killian on the shoulder as a means of encouragement. "I trust you'll both be cautious," he requested. "I'll be here with Roland, but if there's any way I can help, you know where to find me."

"Aye, mate. Much appreciated," he replied, shaking the outlaw's hand, and turning to follow Regina into the night.

* * *

The town was still asleep when Killian and Regina made it back to Granny's Bed and Breakfast. The dagger weighed heavy against Killian's chest from the inside pocket of his leather coat. Regina had gathered a few other items from her vault that she thought might be of use, including a cuff bracelet like the one they tried to use against Pan's magic.

An eerie silence fell over them as they moved slowly down the hallway toward Killian's room. He carefully pushed open the door and the hairs on the back of his neck stood up. The place had been turned over, drawers flung open, his belongings strewn about, and the chair in which Emma sat when he awoke had been smashed to pieces.

And Emma was gone.

They walked quietly through the open door, and Regina illuminated the lamp on the bedside table with a wave of her hand.

"She was looking for something," Killian broke the silence.

"The dagger?" Regina offered.

"Aye," he spoke softly, walking to the foot of the bed and picking up the scarf he had swiped from her room after she disappeared. He had kept it in the top drawer of his bedside table, and now it lay among the other items she discarded in her frantic search. "It's likely she expected I'd have it," he said, tossing the scarf that smelled like her hair back on the bed. "She only sent me away so she could search for it," he added, dejected.

He remembered the way she rested her head against his, nearly pleading for his help with the gesture, and he furrowed his brow, confused.

"Why not simply kill me if all she wanted was control of the dagger?" he questioned.

Before Regina could venture a guess, the door behind her slammed shut and a burst of magical energy flung them both across the room. Regaining her footing, Regina turned to face Emma with a ball of fire dancing above her outstretched palm. The Dark Swan strode forward, extinguishing the flame and pinning Regina to the wall by the throat with one outstretched arm, coming to a stop in the middle of the room.

She stared at Regina with eyes of cold steel, emotionally detached and unquestionably willing to kill.

"Release her," came Killian's heartbroken command from where he'd landed near the window. He stood with the Dark One's dagger in hand, looking at her with pain and guilt in his eyes, his jaw clenched tight.

Emma turned her head toward him, arm still extended, and a tear rolled down her cheek. The pirate and the Dark One stared into each others eyes, each searching for a sign of hope in the other person.

Emma's hand flinched, and Regina gasped for air, doubling over and bracing her hands on her knees. Recovering quickly, she crossed to Emma and slapped the cuff on the wrist of the arm still held out in front of her.

Feeling the new impenetrable barrier to her magic in place, Emma closed her eyes and released a weary sigh, letting her arm fall back to her side.

* * *

 _ **I'm a newcomer to the world of fanfiction, so I'd love to hear your feedback! Also, look forward to some more direct interaction between Emma and Killian in following chapters now that she can't, you know, snap and kill him.**_


	3. Chapter 3

With Emma under control for the time being, Regina left her with Killian, making the executive decision to seek the advice of the only person in town with personal experience in this kind of dark power. He may have been drifting in and out of consciousness for the past few weeks, but the former Dark One would have to overcome his new-found weakness if they were going to make any progress in liberating Emma from the dark magic's hold on her. Regina would make Gold talk.

Emma sat on the edge of the bed, clearly exhausted and rattled from fighting off the darkness. But she also seemed a bit relieved, Killian noted. Probably because she currently didn't have to worry so much about killing someone if her control slipped. She eyed him as he tucked the dagger back into his coat pocket.

She looked around the room at the destruction, the evidence of her momentary betrayal of his trust, and spoke in a small and shaky voice, "Killian, I am so sorry."

And before she could continue, he was kneeling in front of her, cupping her cheek with his hand.  
"Shh, love, there's no need," he said, his thumb softly caressing her skin. With a sinful smirk and a raised eyebrow, he quipped, "you're welcome to make a mess of my bedroom any time, Swan."

She smiled back at him for the first time since waking him in the middle of the night, and his heart kicked into overdrive.

But as soon as he caught a glimpse of the old Emma, his Emma, she vanished behind the hardened exterior once again, batting his hand away from her face and tearing at the cuff on her wrist, the dark power within her struggling to break its confines with a violent surge, but the cuff wouldn't budge. With no hesitation, he caught hold of her hands and held them still in her lap, pinning her wrists together with his hook and gently draping his hand over hers. He looked deep into her eyes, "Emma, love, I'm here. I'm right here. Come back to me," he pleaded. "Come back, Swan."

He held her gaze as she struggled to pull her hands free of his grip. He continued to whisper, "Come back," over and over, until he saw the darkness in her eyes falter. She slumped forward, burying her face in the crook of his neck as her tears fell on their joined hands. His arms went around her immediately, his hand on the back of her head, holding her tightly to himself.

He simply held her while her breathing slowed, stroking her hair, pressing his cheek against the top of her head.

"Killian, I don't know if I can do this," she confessed, pulling back to look him in the eye again, and he softly brushed the tears away from her cheeks. "It's getting harder to fight it off. And even when I can stop myself from acting on it, the desire to unleash this dark power doesn't let up. It just gets stronger."

He listened intently, using his hook to brush back a strand of hair that had come loose from her tight bun. Her breath stuttered almost imperceptibly as a different kind of desire seemed to flash across her face.

Her eyes flicked down to his lips as she pressed on with her explanation, "It's like I have two personalities, two sets of priorities. There's a whole new side of me that just wants to take whatever I want, with no regard for the consequences" she said, her pulse quickening as she leaned closer ever so slightly, "and it's getting harder to control my impulses."

He swallowed, and she watched his throat contract and release.

He knew that she was in a fragile state. He knew that she was tired and vulnerable. He knew that it was dangerous to test her control, even with the protection of the cuff. He knew it was an ethical grey area to take advantage of her while he possessed the dagger that controlled her.

But Killian Jones is only human. And, gods, he had missed her.

He closed the few inches between them and seized her lips in a searing kiss, slipping his hand around the back of her neck, tilting her head as his tongue slid against hers. She responded in kind, clutching at his collar and sighing against him as she allowed herself to release the tension she'd been holding in. He nearly lost his mind when she latched onto his bottom lip with her teeth and tugged.

They broke apart briefly, faces hovering inches from each other, trading labored breaths. She locked eyes with him and flashed a salacious grin as she began to lean back on the bed, pulling him with her by the collar. As he crawled up after her, he felt her hand slipping inside his coat pocket, setting off alarms in his head. He seized her hands once again, just before her fingers closed around the dagger, and pinned them on either side of her head, landing heavily on top of her.

Killian hovered over her for a few seconds, chest heaving, letting his mind catch up to what just happened. Abruptly, he pushed off of her and paced across the room. He ran his hand through his hair, eyes wide, as he strode quickly away from the bed, attempting to pull himself together.

"You almost had me, you minx!" he accused, laughing incredulously as he turned around to face her. Emma rolled over onto her stomach with an embarrassed groan, hiding her face. He continued laughing as she sat back up to look at him, a guilty expression on her face.

"I told you!" she whined, "it's getting harder to tell the difference between what I want to do and what the darkness tells me to do."

He sighed and his face sobered a little.

"I suppose I'll have to tread lightly until you're free and clear, hm?" he asked, attempting to keep his tone light.

"Yeah," she breathed, nearly leveled by the sadness in his eyes.

Killian had allowed himself to be carried away, euphoric that she was real and standing in front of him. She wouldn't vanish like the multitudes of Emma's who had visited him in his dreams, only to leave him feeling hollow upon waking to an empty room. He had been too eager to believe that their relationship would resume unscathed. Despite the inner struggle he'd witnessed since her return, his mind had been consumed with one thought - she was back.

It was only just now that he realized she wasn't. And she wouldn't be, not fully, until he figured out how to separate her from the powers of darkness that possessed her.

They remained in silence for a few minutes, each dwelling on the new barrier between them. Emma stared at the floor, worried that her friends might not figure out how to bring her back from the darkness before it consumed her, and Killian stared at Emma, knowing full well that they would succeed in time. He knew it in the same way that he knew the Jolly Roger could outrun a dark curse, or that Emma would remember him when he found her last year in Manhattan, or that she would regain her magic after Zelena had taken it from her.

His Swan had the tenacity to beat this villain, too. He just had to help her see it.


	4. Chapter 4

Killian closed the door softly as he stepped out into the hallway. Leaving her side was difficult, especially since that's where he'd wished to be most of all over the past few weeks, but he knew she needed rest - and she wasn't going to get it while the dagger was nearby. He had shoved the discarded clothing off of his bed and helped her settle in, keeping his distance, wary of allowing himself to be drawn in once again. She was like a siren calling to him. Being in her presence alone was too dangerous. She lulled him under her spell all too easily, and even now, all he wanted to do was hold her close and never let go.

As he leaned against the wall in the hallway, he heard footsteps on the stairs. Regina walked solemnly toward him, shaking her head when his eyes pleaded for a solution.

"I was able to speak with Gold, but I think he's got a few screws loose," she explained. "He wasn't much help. But he did seem pretty adamant that if we didn't act fast, Emma would grow accustomed to the Dark One's presence in her mind."

"But what does that mean?" Killian asked, a hint of desperation bleeding through his hushed tone.

"It means that the longer she's under the influence of darkness, the easier it will be to give in to it," she stated. "Before long, it will be impossible to separate the Emma we know from the one motivated by the power of the Dark One."

Killian reigned in the fear that gripped his heart, opting for determination: "That is not an option."

"I know," Regina replied, annoyed that he could possibly perceive her as someone who would lie down and take whatever life threw at her. When she was finished threatening him with a piercing stare, she added, "I think we need Merlin. The apprentice seemed to think he was the only one who would have enough power to command the Dark One."

"Well that's bloody perfect. Our only hope lies with someone we have no idea how to locate," Killian retorted.

"Yeah, there's that," Regina sighed. "But there might be a way to tap into his knowledge without tracking him down."

Killian raised an eyebrow.

"I'm not sure," she elaborated, "but there might be something in the house where the apprentice had been staying. Not all of those books were blank, you know."

"And you think something there might hold the key to freeing Emma?" he asked.

"I think it's our best shot," she admitted. "I'll drop by the Charmings' first thing in the morning. I think I know the perfect boy for the job."

"Do you think involving the lad is a good idea?" Killian looked skeptical. "Emma seemed fairly decided that no one should know she was here. I think that sentiment may extend to her son most of all."

Regina shrugged, clearly unphased by the notion of disregarding Emma's wishes.

"She's hardly in a position to be choosy," she muttered as she started back down the hallway toward the stairs. "And like it or not," she turned back to face him, "Emma Swan needs all the help she can get."

She started down the stairs, and Killian quickly followed after her, "Wait!"

Extracting the dagger from his coat, he offered it out to her.

"I think you'd better take this," he stated. "We need to keep it as far from Emma as we can, and I don't plan on leaving her side."

Her eyes narrowed to slits, taking a few steps back toward him and snatching the weapon by the blade, flicking it briefly into the air and catching the hilt.

"Watch yourself, pirate," she warned. "That woman in there is not the same one you knew before she left."

Regina held his gaze for a moment then turned on her heel and sauntered down the steps.

Killian knew that she was right. He had seen it himself - Emma was barely able to maintain control over the Dark One's influence. She was drifting gradually out into a sea of darkness, and it was getting more and more difficult for her to find the shore. She would need a guide, a lighthouse to steer her away from the abyss, and he had every intention of being that for her. Emma had gently guided him out of a dark existence, loosening the bonds that his quest for revenge had formed around his heart, and he would do his damnedest to return the favor. If she needed a lighthouse, he would be one.

He glanced back at his bedroom door.

She had told him once that the only person who saved her was herself. He was willing to bet that this was the first time that herself was exactly the person she needed saving from. He gripped the doorknob and leaned his forehead against the wood, hoping desperately that she could realize that it was okay to need people. The only antidote to darkness was light, the only cure for hate was love, and Emma would need the love of her family and friends to beat back the darkness.

Killian slipped back into the room, which was tinged with the fragile light of dawn, and slipped out of his boots, leaving them at the door. He shrugged out of his coat as he padded across the room toward his whole world, his Swan. The faint glow from the window glinted off of her silvery skin, but other than that, she appeared just as he remembered her. Face slack with sleep, she seemed almost too normal, too peaceful for the turmoil that he knew stirred inside of her. The crease between her eyebrows had smoothed, and her breath was slow and steady.

He lifted the blankets and slid into bed behind her, sliding his hand over her waist and burying his nose against the back of her neck. She might be dangerous, and unpredictable, and conflicted, but she was still Emma. He would be there to cherish however much of her remained as the Dark One's power encroached, even to the very end. Even if the hope in her eyes faded completely behind the guise of darkness, he would hold on, anchoring her to the light.

Maybe she was changed by the power within her, struggling between the person she was and the person it was coercing her to be, but In the haze of sleep, she shifted against the bed, pressing tighter against him, and he pressed his lips against her neck.

He drifted off to sleep breathing in her scent, which was the same.

* * *

Killian awoke a couple of hours later to a cold bed, which was typical of the last few weeks, but when the previous night's events came rushing back to him, he bolted upright. Placing his hand on the cold space next to him, he spoke to the empty room,

"Swan?"

With an exasperated sigh, he swung his legs off the bed and rubbed his hand down his face.

"Bloody insufferable woman," he grumbled, "is it so difficult to simply stay put?" he continued muttering to himself, using frustration to mask the worry he felt in the pit of his stomach. If she was out causing havoc in Storybrooke, if she hurt someone, she would never forgive herself. And he had been a fool for taking his eyes off of her even as she slept. She had come to him first for help - not to Regina, not to the Crocodile, not even to her parents. In that decision, she had trusted him to keep her from endangering the people she cares about. He truly hoped that the cuff on her wrist would be enough to keep her from causing too much trouble before he tracked her down.

Pulling on his boots and snatching his coat from the rack on the way out the door, he set off toward the Charmings' loft.

* * *

He heard the murmur of voices inside before he rapped his hook against the door. David greeted him, looking absolutely wrecked, and Killian glanced over the man's shoulder into the kitchen where Snow White sat clutching a cup of tea and staring absently ahead. Regina was already there, and by the looks of things, she had just filled them in on the state of their daughter.

"Where's. Emma?" Regina demanded through clenched teeth as the pirate entered the apartment alone.

"Ah, you see, that's why I came here. I haven't a clue," he admitted. "Now if you would kindly summon her with that dagger before she does something we would all regret…"

"Do you think she would harm someone?" Mary Margaret asked with a small voice, looking up at him. David placed his arm around his wife's shoulders, attempting to shield her from the emotional trauma of a daughter on the brink of disaster, but looking just as vulnerable to it himself. He set his jaw and steeled his expression, waiting for an answer to his wife's question.

Killian glanced between them, remembering the several times last night that Emma had come close to injuring him or Regina, and cast his eyes down.

"Aye, I think she could," he said to the ground.

"Then why did you let her out of your sight?" Regina accused.

"She slipped out after I fell asleep," he explained, eyes flicking over to David, who was too preoccupied with concern for Emma to dole out any threats about their relationship.

"But you spoke to her? And she was okay, right? Still Emma?" Snow questioned.

"Aye," he confirmed wholeheartedly. "She is struggling, and the darkness is constantly grasping for a foothold inside of her, but aye. Emma's in there. And she isn't giving up without a fight, I can guarantee that. But she is growing weary, and the longer the Dark One's power is inside of her, the more susceptible she becomes. There is no time to waste," he concluded. "So I suggest," he directed his attention to Regina, "that you use that dagger to summon her back here where we can all keep an eye on her."

Regina nodded with a single jerk of the head and lifted the dagger straight out in front of her.

Mary Margaret rose from her stool and wrapped her arm around her husband's waist, taking a deep breath.

David stood stock still, staring at the blade where his daughter's name was etched in black.

"Dark One," Regina's voice rang out. "I summon thee."

A heavy silence fell, and Killian could hear his pulse in his ears as they all waited for Emma.

When she suddenly appeared in the center of the room, Killian took a step back and Snow gasped in shock, throwing her hand over her open mouth.

Emma's eyes were wide with horror and fear, and her body shook with tension. Her breaths were short and heavy, fighting off panic, as she slowly stared down at her trembling hands, holding them out in front of her, palms up.

They were drenched in blood.

* * *

 **AN: Reviews would make my day! And as you can see, I'm taking a bit of a plot shortcut here. Kitsis and Horowitz may be heading to Camelot, but I'm going to stick with Storybrooke - I'm not trying to navigate a whole new world (cue Aladdin song). The purpose of this story is primarily an exploration of the relationships between Emma and her loved ones, especially Killian. Can't get enough of those Captain Swan feels. Hope you like it!**


	5. Chapter 5

"What have I done? Oh God, what have I done?" Emma sank to the ground, eyes locked on her trembling hands.

Everyone stared in shock, all of the air sucked out of the room.

Only a few seconds had passed, but it felt like hours as Killian's pulse pounded in his ears and his eyes went in and out of focus.

"Who?" Regina broke the silence.

Emma looked up at her, the anguish evident on her face.

"Leroy. It's-it's Leroy."

"Is he dead?" Regina asked in a flat tone.

Emma blanched.

"Oh God. I don't think so, but. But I don't know," she looked around the room frantically, eyes landing on Killian.

"I was going to Regina's, looking for the dagger," her eyes fell, ashamed. "He saw me passing the Rabbit Hole and got in my way. It all happened so fast. I just threw him into the alley. I think he hit the dumpster - there was a big gash in his side. He was… he was just laying there… I tried to stop the bleeding," she stared down at her hands.

David was already heading for the door.

"Emma look at me," he demanded, pausing with his hand on the knob. "It's going to be okay. I'm getting help."

He left the room with a determined gait, raising his phone to his ear.

Mary Margaret grabbed a wet towel from the sink and knelt in front of her daughter. She silently and methodically cleaned Emma's hands as if they were covered in dirt or mud, and not the blood of an old and dear friend. Regina and Killian looked on in silence as a mother took care of her daughter. When she finished, she held Emma's hands in hers and looked into her daughter's red-rimmed eyes, puffy from exhaustion and tears, and gave her fingers a reassuring squeeze. No words passed her lips, but her eyes declared, "I love you. No matter what."

She stood, leading Emma to her feet, and released her, turning to rinse the rag in the sink.

Emma's eyes glazed over as she stared straight ahead, looking like she might collapse again, and Killian rushed to her side. He brushed her hair from her face and lifted her hands to his lips, placing a kiss on the tips of her knuckles. She yanked her hands away and took several steps back, anger flashing across her face.

Why did none of them hate her? She deserved to be hated. Why did they still trust her? She had injured, possibly killed, one of their friends. How dare they look at her with compassion and hope instead of fear? They should fear her. She could hurt them, and she had just proven it. and the longer she stayed, the less that idea repulsed her. She should teach them a lesson about fear. About power. She should show them just how much damage she could do.

Just before her thoughts spun out of control, her gaze returned to Killian's face. He was heartbroken. Desperate. His eyes were glassy, wet with unshed tears, and they radiated love. She had told him she loved him before submitting to the darkness, and she could not betray that declaration by letting the dark power, the power that was quickly gaining more control over her mind, manipulate her into hurting anyone else. Especially someone to whom she'd given her heart.

She decided right then that she had to leave. To protect her friends, her family. She would go somewhere far, deep in the woods maybe, someplace where she couldn't be a danger to anyone. Coming back had been a mistake, one that put everyone she loved at risk, and she owed it to them to correct that mistake. She held Killian's gaze and took a few more steps backward before suddenly turning to sprint the last few paces to the door.

She was reaching for the doorknob before the others could even flinch, and she was poised for a clean getaway, but it was brought up short by a faint voice drifting out of the hallway behind her.

"Mom?"

* * *

She sat on a kitchen bar stool, her hand clutching Killian's to anchor herself, hoping against hope that she wouldn't harm her own kid. His voice had been like a knife to the gut. She had briefly considered continuing her escape into hiding, the goal of protecting Henry eclipsing all others, but she couldn't bring herself to walk out on him.

Now she sat facing him, the kitchen bar acting as a barrier between them as he stood with Regina at his back, her hands draped protectively on his shoulders.

Mary Margaret was making more tea.

Henry wasn't afraid of her, of course. He had been so happy to see her that Regina had to stop him from running to her immediately.

Even now he stood across from her with a gentle smile on his face.

"You look awesome," he beamed.

Killian chuckled and wrapped his arm around her waist, some of the tension leaving Emma's shoulders.

"It's not a cool as it looks, kid," she offered, smoothing her hands down the front of her dark leather jacket. "The Dark One's power isn't messing around," she added, unsure of how to communicate just how unstable she was without frightening him.

"But we have a plan," Regina asserted, squeezing Henry's shoulders.

"We do?" Emma asked.

Regina launched into her theory about the Apprentice's books with authority, perhaps overly emphatic about Henry's role in sifting through the writings for information on the Dark One, which Emma suspected was an attempt to ensure that he left the loft, and Emma's presence, as soon as possible. She was grateful.

But Henry was getting older, and he saw right through their attempt to keep him out of harm's way. He rolled his eyes at Regina's enthusiasm with a smile. Fortunately for them, he also knew that they really did need his help to find the information that would free his mom. In his head, he decided to call his new task "Operation Phoenix."

Pleased with himself, and entirely convinced that Regina's plan would work, he grabbed his scarf and jacket, ready to get started.

"Don't worry, mom. We'll figure it out," he reassured her with a hand on her arm. Emma wondered how he could possibly be so grown up when just yesterday he was telling her fairy tales at his "castle" near the water.

It was quickly decided that Killian would stay at the loft with Emma while Regina, Henry, and Mary Margaret began to look for answers at the Apprentice's house. The latter scooped Emma's baby brother from his crib, and buckled him into a carrier as he continued sleeping peacefully, totally oblivious to the chaos around him.

"Your big sister is so brave," Marry Margaret cooed, talking softly to baby Neal. "So kind, and good. We know she's going to be just fine, don't we?"

She looked over her shoulder at her daughter and smiled. Standing up with the carrier hanging from the crook of her elbow, she crossed to Emma, placed a hand on her cheek, and kissed her forehead, then followed Regina and Henry out the door.

* * *

"You almost took off again," Killian observed, absently stroking his thumb against the back of Emma's hand, not meeting her eyes.

"Killian," she sighed as she pulled her hand from his to inspect the creases around her nail beds where some remnants of blood lingered. "I might have killed someone today. I can't trust myself around anyone."

"But we'd all be worse off if you disappeared again, Swan…" he began, but she cut him off.

"I know."

And there was a new kind of self-assured determination in her eyes that he hadn't seen in a long while. Something had changed in the last several minutes that reignited the spark in her eyes, the buoyancy of spirit that made her unsinkable. Killian straightened up a bit when he saw it.

"You all have such faith in me. You, my parents, Henry. Hell, even Regina seems to think I'm salvageable. Somehow, when you're all around me, believing in me, the darkness is a little easier to manage. Sitting there looking at Henry, I just realized that I couldn't run off and hide without betraying his trust. I thought the answer was to pull away in order to protect everyone, but I was wrong. I have to confront this in order to fix it. Henry believes with his whole heart that I'm going to beat the darkness. I want to make it true for him," she glanced up at Killian, who was already leaning toward her.

Neither reaching out, they simply closed the gap between the stools on which they both sat, their only physical connection was the soft press of his lips against hers. The kiss was nothing more than a whisper, then he was nudging his nose against hers, tilting his head to breathe more kisses across her cheek.

"You're remarkable," he murmured into her skin.

She stayed still with her eyes closed, focusing on his touch.

Killian leaned in closer, sliding his hand halfway up her thigh while he placed another kiss at the corner of her jaw. She shivered when his nose sought out the scent of her hair and he let his lips linger behind her ear.

"Killian, I think you should tie me up," she stated abruptly, pushing a hand against his chest.

He leaned back to look her in the eye, an eyebrow shooting up his forehead.

"Not what I was going for, love, but I like where your head's at," he said, his voice overflowing with heated innuendo, and his face nearly splitting in half around that devilish smirk.

"Easy, killer," she rolled her eyes. "I'm serious. I'm, um… it's getting confusing again."

She squeezed her eyes shut, tilting her head down, as her hands came up to clutch at his collar with a vice grip. She stood and he followed, easing his hand around hers, carefully attempting to loosen their hold.

"Emma, it's alright. It's going to be fine," he reassured.

"Killian…" she said through clenched teeth, her voice taking on an angrier quality. "I'm really sorry."

And she took a swing at him.

He dodged the blow, agile pirate that he is, and flung himself at her, trapping her arms at her sides and tackling her backwards onto the bed.

"You may have been right love," he admitted, taking her outburst in stride.

He produced a rope, well-prepared pirate that he is, and secured her hands to the rods of the headboard, ensuring that she could sit up comfortably with a pillow at her back. He perched next to her on the bed and watched her rest her head back against the wall as she tried to regain control.

"Thanks," she said on an exhale, not picking her head up from the wall.

"Anytime love," he responded, a bit too pleased that he'd bested her.

David chose that moment to return to the loft, pausing in the doorway and blinking at the pair on the bed.

"Anything I should know about?" he asked, face turning red with what Killian assumed was more due to anger than embarrassment.

"Not what it looks like, mate. Emma just didn't want to hurt anyone else," Killian quickly explained, standing up to put some space between himself and the woman tied to her parents' bed.

Her head jerked up to look at David, totally unconcerned with their compromising position.

"Leroy?" she asked.

"He's going to be fine," David stated, and Emma breathed a sigh of relief. "No internal damage, just a scary amount of blood. Dr. Whale stitched him right up."

"See, love? All's well," Killian smiled, moving back to her side to place his hand on her cheek.

Just as David averted his eyes and began to escape toward the kitchen, his phone rang.

"What's up?" he answered, then paused, listening.

"What?" he whispered, slowly turning to face Emma and Killian who watched him carefully.

David's eyes widened in shock, staring in their direction for a long moment as if considering a weighty decision, and Emma's breath caught in her throat.

"Be right there," he said decidedly, and ended the call.

* * *

 **AN: Thank you for the reviews and follows! Your feedback is very motivating - and I'm all for suggestions and advice as well. We've still got a bit of story ahead of us, so I'll try to update regularly. I've got 99 problems, and all of them are grad school.**


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